One of Japan's most extravagant and influential musicians, Kenji Sawada also had quite an acting career, starting when he played his stage persona Julie in the three Tigers musical films, The Tigers: The World Is Waiting for Us (1968), The Tigers: Colorful Invitation (1968), and Swinging London (1969). After the band disbanded for 10 years, Kenji Sawada became a solo musician, acting in many films along the way, and earning the title "The David Bowie Of The Far East" by overzealous Hong Kong radio DJs when his song TOKIO became a hit there. He can also lay claim to creating what became the Visual Kei movement of music and fashion, as his onstage outfits and behavior during the period of 1977-1982 were deemed as extremely scandalous and shocking at the time. During this period, he earned a best actor award for his role as the teacher who tries to build a nuclear bomb to set off in the heart of Tokyo in The Man Who Stole The Sun (1979).
Married to Emi Ito of the Peanuts (of Mothra and Mothra vs. Godzilla fame) for several years, he is now married to a co-star of his he met on the set of Tora-san: The Professional. He still continues to act and perform musically to this day and reuinted with his Tigers bandmates in December of 2013. |